Quick Definition
NACE Code (NACE) — A NACE code identifies a category in the European Union's statistical classification of economic activities.
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A NACE code identifies a category in the European Union's statistical classification of economic activities. NACE comes from the French name Nomenclature statistique des activités économiques dans la Communauté européenne.
NACE Rev. 2.1 is the current version for European statistics from 2025 onwards. The original NACE Rev. 2 applies to European statistics for 2008–2024. Eurostat notes that Rev. 2.1 introduced new concepts and restructured some headings, so a code should always be recorded with its version.
Current source: Eurostat NACE Rev. 2.1, 2025 edition. Version status checked 16 August 2026. Use the Eurostat NACE overview and official Rev. 2.1 manual for classification decisions.
NACE is hierarchical. Each more detailed level sits within the level above it.
| Level | Identifier | What it represents |
|---|---|---|
| Section | Letter | Broad area of economic activity |
| Division | 2 digits | Activity division |
| Group | 3 digits | More specific group within a division |
| Class | 4 digits | Most detailed NACE category |
The title of a class is only a starting point. Eurostat's explanatory notes describe what a category includes, what it also includes, and which borderline activities it excludes.
The OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines do not prescribe NACE or another industry-code system. They require a comparability analysis based on the economically relevant characteristics of the controlled transaction and the circumstances of the parties.
Commercial databases may provide NACE fields that can be used as reproducible search criteria. A shared code does not establish comparability: companies returned by the search still require review of their functions, assets, risks, products or services, markets, business strategies, and financial information.
| Search stage | Appropriate use of NACE | Required follow-up |
|---|---|---|
| Initial screening | Select supported classes or groups linked to the tested activity | Record the code, version, database, and search date |
| Expansion | Add adjacent categories only where the underlying activities may be relevant | Explain why each added category fits the functional profile |
| Manual screening | Use the recorded code as one data point | Verify the company's actual activities using reliable public information |
| Final selection | Retain the search trail for reproducibility | Apply the full comparability criteria independently of the code |
Where a unit carries on more than one activity, Eurostat's framework generally identifies the principal activity as the activity contributing most to value added and applies a hierarchical top-down method. The activity identified this way does not need to account for more than half of the unit's value added.
A reviewable workflow is:
Registered code versus actual activity: A registered or database-supplied code may be old, assigned under a different NACE version, or too broad for the tested transaction. Verify actual activities during manual screening and preserve any difference between the registered code and the search codes in the methodology.
Do not treat a Rev. 2 code as automatically equivalent to a Rev. 2.1 code. Eurostat publishes official correspondence tables, but a mapping can require judgment because activities may move between classes.
Before running a search:
Assume a company mainly develops software for group companies, also provides user support, and occasionally resells third-party licences.
| Question | Evidence to review | Classification consequence |
|---|---|---|
| Which activity contributes most to value added? | Segment accounts, staff roles, cost base, and revenue model | Candidate principal activity |
| Is support integral to development or a separate service? | Contracts, statements of work, and delivery teams | Same class or a material secondary activity |
| Is licence resale principal, secondary, or incidental? | Gross versus net revenue, contractual role, and resources used | Possible additional search category |
| Which code-list version does the database use? | Database methodology and field documentation | Rev. 2 or Rev. 2.1 search syntax |
The result should be a documented set of candidate search codes followed by manual screening, not a conclusion based only on the company's registered code or the wording of one category.
No. A class is more specific, but it may be too narrow or may combine activities that are economically different for the tested transaction. Begin with supported criteria and expand only with a documented functional rationale.
No. The NACE code lookup tool suggests candidate codes. Verify each suggestion against Eurostat's current materials and follow the relevant national authority's procedure for an official classification or filing.
Yes, where the tested activity or the search strategy supports more than one category. Record every code and explain why it is relevant. Do not broaden the search solely to increase the number of results.
Record the database, NACE version, exact codes and descriptions, search date, inclusion and exclusion logic, any expansion, the number of results at each stage, and the manual-screening reasons for accepted and rejected companies.